Bears running out of things to say

Lovie Smith couldn’t even hang his hat on the right cliché, but why should trite sayings be different from anything else in a season where everything has gone wrong.

Matt Trowbridge

Lovie Smith couldn’t even hang his hat on the right cliché, but why should trite sayings be different from anything else in a season where everything has gone wrong.

“What you hang your head (sic) on is the thing we hung our head on for the four wins that we’ve had this year,” Chicago’s coach said after Minnesota drubbed the Bears 36-10 Sunday for their sixth loss in seven games. “We hang our head on the thing we always have.”

Smith’s malapropism seemed apropos on a day where the Bears left with their heads hanging low.

“I feel like we’re saying the same things over and over to you guys day in and day out,” receiver Devin Hester said. “I ran out of words to say.”

“As good a football team as I think we have in here,” quarterback Jay Cutler said, “and then to go out week after week and not live up to our own expectations — that’s a tough one.”

The Bears seem to think they are a lot better than their opponents do. Chicago always seems surprised when Cutler throws an interception, even though his two in the final three minutes of the first half Sunday increased his league lead to 20.
The Vikings expected them.

“Our whole defense felt like we had an opportunity today,” said Minnesota cornerback Cedric Griffin, who made the first interception of Cutler. “We knew Cutler was going to throw the ball around the field, and we were just waiting for our opportunity to get a ball.”

Why was Cutler even throwing for the end zone on second-and-3 from the Minnesota 22 with 2:45 left in the half? Shouldn’t Chicago, down 17-7, have tried to milk a little clock and keep the ball out of Brett Favre’s hands on a day when the Vikings gained 537 yards?

“We didn’t even try to establish a running game,” said Matt Forte, who had 27 yards on only eight carries.

Chicago did think about running on that play.

“We had a run called,” offensive coordinator Ron Turner said, “but it was a bad look for us, so (Jay) audibled.”

Cutler got another chance after the Bears defense turned in its third three-and-out of the half. This one ended the same way. Linebacker E.J. Henderson broke up a third-and-2 pass from the Minnesota 37 to Earl Bennett and Jared Allen intercepted the deflection with 57 seconds left. The Vikings then drove 70 yards in 40 seconds to lead 24-7.

“Henderson made a good play. He jumped on it, hit it and the ball went flying up in the air,” Turner said. “It just happened to go right to them.”

If you’re sensing a coaching theme for the 2009 Bears, it’s that nothing is ever Jay Cutler’s fault.
That includes not getting into the end zone after Johnny Knox returned the second-half kickoff to the Minnesota 10. Cutler was sacked twice. Turner said the second-down sack should have been a touchdown.

“His primary receiver ran the wrong route, so he’s looking for a guy who is supposed to be there who would have been wide open,” Turner said. “He’s not there, so then Jay gets sacked.

“It’s a matter of us executing better and giving him an opportunity. When you give him an opportunity, he’s a (heck) of a player, but we’ve got to give him a chance on each and every play.

“It’s easy to blame the quarterback, but everybody has got to execute. If you’ve got 11 guys and one guy doesn’t do his job, it’s tough for any quarterback to execute. That’s been the story of what we’ve had (all year).”

At least that’s the story the Bears have told all year. And it’s true Jay Cutler hasn’t been Chicago’s biggest problem. But he also hasn’t been their best asset.

The Bears traded two No. 1 draft picks, a No. 3 and Kyle Orton for Cutler so they could hang their hat on him. Instead, they’re hanging their heads.

Assistant sports editor Matt Trowbridge can be reached at 815-987-1383 or mtrowbridge@rrstar.com.